Sowore: Sultan Of Sokoto Sends Message To Buhari On Disobedience Of Court Orders

Sultan Advocates Respect For Rule Of Law

The Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, has warned leaders against any form of disobedience to court orders.

He gave the warning on Thursday in Abuja at the 2019 fourth quarter meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council with the theme, ‘Religion and civil authorities in dialogue for nation-building.’

The religious and traditional ruler warned that disobedience of court orders is a recipe for lawlessness and chaos.

Though no specific name was mentioned, the Sultan’s statement is believed to be a veiled reference to the travails of Omoyele Sowore in the hands of the Department of State Services.

He noted that disagreements with any court order should be followed by an appeal and not disregard for such order.

The monarch said, “We must regularly obey and respect the laws of our land. We should never disregard the laws to avoid the consequences. If a court makes a judicial pronouncement on a particular matter, it should be obeyed to the letter.

“If you have any problem or disagree with the pronouncement, the next step is to appeal the pronouncement instead of disregarding or violating court judgments.”

He added that ignoring court orders by any category of leaders is equal to setting bad and dangerous precedents for the future.

“If you are served a court order and you deliberately refused to obey it because you are a governor, president or any influential person, then you are setting a dangerous precedent.”

“There’s no society that will prosper through lawlessness; citizens must be law-abiding so that we can achieve the desired development,” Sultan Abubakar said.

In his remarks during the programme, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, commended the co-chairmen and members of the NIREC for being steadfast in maintaining the peace and harmony in the country.

He harped on the need for religious leaders in the country to always preach and maintain peace and unity among their members while relating with adherents of other faiths.

He added that religious tolerance has great impact on the security of the nation.

“The time has now come for governments at all levels to sit down and discuss the issue of religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence with our religious and traditional rulers because the success or failure of security administration in the country depends largely on both institutions.

“You, therefore, remain in the frontline of stakeholders in the business of peacebuilding in every community,” Mustapha noted.